Artist stuck in lift on way to her own exhibition

Nov 13 2009 by Stuart Wilson, Ayrshire Post (main ed)

AN artist has paid tribute to firemen who hauled her from a lift – with 40 of her own paintings.

Sandra Ratcliffe was trapped as she travelled to the grand opening of her own exhibition.

And only a daring rescue mission saved her from missing the biggest day of her career.

Sandra, of Ayr, was en route to open her highly anticipated exhibition on the remote island of Gigha.

But disaster struck when the lift at her block of flats ground to a halt, with Sandra and her paintings trapped inside.

She confessed: “I never thought being stuck in a lift would bother me – until it actually happened.

“I pressed the alarm button and got through to someone in England who’d never even heard of Ayr.

“I waited for them to come, but nothing happened so I pressed the button again and had to repeat the story to a completely different person.

“All I could think of was missing the start of the exhibition, which had been planned for more than a year.”

Luckily for Sandra, her shouts for help were heard by neighbours on the ground who alerted emergency services.

Firemen raced to the scene and were able to pluck Sandra – and her paintings – to safety.

And Sandra, 60, laughed: “When they prized open the doors and saw the paintings, they were joking that I must have been trapped for a long time.

“I ended up getting a fireman’s lift out and was able to get on my way just a couple of hours late.

“But it was pretty hairy for a while, and if it hadn’t been for my neighbours hearing my shouts I’d probably still have been stuck there now.”

Sandra’s exhibition in Gigha runs until March next year and is her second major showcase since leaving a career as a journalist.

She said: “It was a good job I made it, because I ended up selling 11 pieces of work on the first day.

“I just love painting and my flat overlooks Arran, so I’m inspired every day just by looking out the window.”